Inside Info

Remember these guys? I do. It was Swift Currents first real rock show! Default and Mobile played the Credit Union I-Plex to start the summer off and it was GRAND.


Around that time I got to meet the guy who was responsible for bringing those two bands to Swift Current. He's a concert promoter from Saskatoon who runs the Roxy on Broad which is a rock bar ... they have shows there all the time. One of the conversations we had before the show, had to do with some of the other acts that could possibly come through town over the next year.

Keep in mind all of this was just speculation at the time, but a few bands he threw out there were Seether and Three Days Grace. That conversation lead to one that just recently caught my attention a little more than usual. I remember him mentioning something about Collective Soul maybe playing here shortly after New Years. Well yesterday I found out they're going to be at the Prarieland in Saskatoon for the New Years Eve Party!! Could that possibly mean Collective Soul will be the next big name to come to Swift Current? I guess we'll find out ... until something is officially announced ... its all just speculation!!

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I need to give a shout out to people who work two jobs. I don't know how you do it. Over the last couple weeks I've been helping my brother side the Morse Town Hall. Here's what my schedule has been like ....

4:15 AM - alarm

6:00 AM - start morning show

12:30 PM - Done @ work

1:00 PM - Drive to Morse, Side all day long

9:00 PM - Drive home, Go to bed

(Repeat)


Being from Riverhurst, a small farming community, where I used to work 17 hour days at the Potato Barns ... you would think this would be no problem. But apparently I just can't hack it ... I have been dragging a** lately and I've come to the conclusion that in my old age I've turned into a softy! I guess 3 years of radio has beaten the farm kid out of me!

Anyway ... I just wanted to say this to those people who work two jobs or just work extremely long hours ... your amazing ... you are twice the man I am ... and if your a woman ... your still twice the man I am.

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The last poll ended with 80% saying Chinese Democracy will come out November 23rd. 10% said maybe ... 10% said HA HA HA.

I changed the question .. its about the Broncos ... hope you check it out.

Metallica

Look at that man. One of the greatest lead guys in the history of Metal. He looks ... evil ... but so Awesome. To be honest, I'm a lil scared of him. He's like 6'4 and makes Lars look like a midget when he stands beside him. He's wearing a frickin jean jacket with the sleeves cut off! His go tee is white ... I mean ... he's so old ... yet so menacing! He ends off every word by throwing an AH on the end. " St Anger-AH in my head, he never gets respect-Ah " ... you know what I'm talking about. His name is James Hetfield, and you could see him in person!!

This morning we released the details on our next Live Like A Rock star Series ... we'll be sending two people to Metallica in Calgary December 5th!! (its a Friday!) The Pengrowth Saddledome is sold out for two nights, both December 4th and the 5th ... I'm trying to tell you these tickets are RARE! Not only will you be there to see James, Lars, Kirk and Rob .. but you'll also be staying in the KING Room at the Travelodge Hotel Calgary Airport ... plus we'll drive you from your hotel room to the show and back again in the Eagle Cruiser ... which means there will be fun to be had at the show!!

Here's how you win ... starting Thursday, listen for "Mandatory Metallica" and be the first caller as soon as you hear a Metallica song, we'll put your name in for a shot at winning Live Like a Rock star with Metallica!!

Again .. it starts this Thursday.

A Killer Blog Combo

It looks like every man, woman, and child in North America will be getting a free Dr. Pepper! I say that because Dr. Pepper promised to do so, if Chinese Democracy came out before the end of this year and with a release date of November 23rd ... it looks like they'll be out a couple mill!!

This release date is different from the others for a couple reasons ... one ... they linked themselves with a huge business associate, Best Buy. Two, they released the first single to radio this morning, interestingly enough, titled Chinese Democracy.

We played it for the first time and let me be the first to say ... it is good!! I mean, I really expected it to suck .. after all the money spent, the 20 different band members Axl went through over the last decade and all the hype this album has gotten ... how could it be good? Well .. I don't know how they did it .. but what I hear so far .. makes me warm and fuzzy on the inside!!

I'll be the first to say ... I can't wait until November 23rd to drive to a different city, walk into a Best Buy, and buy the new GNR album !

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I took this off of CNN ....

Perhaps it's fitting that AC/DC's 15th studio album will be sold exclusively through one retailer (Wal-Mart) — because this collection consists of little more than a single song.

The Aussie outfit's first album in eight years kicks off with the single ''Rock N Roll Train,'' a meaty, medium-paced riff assault with a terrific, growling performance from singer Brian Johnson and a lead-guitar solo courtesy of Angus Young that erupts out of the song like the baby monster pummeling its way through John Hurt's chest in Alien. And, with the exception of some slower, more atmospheric moments during ''Rock N Roll Dream,'' all 15 tracks on Black Ice could be described in almost exactly the same way.

Of course, the appeal of AC/DC lies with their more-than-30-year-old commitment to the same no-frills metal groove. But that groove now seems in danger of becoming a rut. True, ''Stormy May Day'' has some nice slide guitar, ''She Likes Rock N Roll'' boasts a smidgen more funk in the playing of bassist Cliff Williams, and ''Anything Goes'' is both the disc's most hummable moment and its most wistful. But all these midtempo songs are still incredibly similar to one another, as they are to the almost identically paced ''Big Jack,'' ''War Machine,'' and ''Decibel'' (though the latter does contain an all-time-great dumb lyric: “Decibel!/That’s the history of Rock N Roll!”). Even 2000’s fairly monochromatic Stiff Upper Lip had more varied material — as well as 75 percent fewer songs with the word rock in the title. B–

Who is this idiot? SHUT UP! .... ya ... ya stupid idiot!!! In all honesty ... the album is good ... it sounds like AC/DC ... what else do you expect when you go and buy an AC/DC album ... do you expect a techno album? .... idiot.

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Money Well Spent

Today is a celebration. A celebration for the ages. A celebration that shall extend into the late night and well into the new year. A celebration of the greatest rock n' roll band in the world putting out their first album since Stiff Upper Lip ! I call this celebration ....

THE BLACK ICE CELEBRATION !!!!

Give me a break ... I'm not about to sit here for half an hour thinking of something witty to call it ... way to much work.

ACDC's new album comes 8 years after their last one in 2000. I can remember exactly what I was doing when Stiff Upper lip hit shelves ... I was in grade 10, we just got out of school ... I was riding in Chris Durell's truck down main street in Central Butte Saskatchewan and "stiff upper lip" was pumping through his massive stereo ... people walking on the street could probably only here the bass ... it was way to loud ... and I loved it!!!

Usually new albums will drop on a Tuesday, but it seems lately that bands are opting out of releasing their new collection on the same ol day. Metallica, for example, just released "Death Magnetic" on a Friday. The other weird thing about Black Ice is it will only be sold by Wal Mart ... which is kind of a lie. That's just happening in the US ... Wal Mart has promised ACDC that they will sell at least 2.5 million copies of Black Ice, which is why it's being sold exclusively through the store. Up here, you'll be able to buy it anywhere and everywhere. I wouldn't be surprised to see it in Safeway ... or Humpty's (apparently they sell shirts now, so anything is possible)

I've had the opportunity to listen to the whole album and lets just say, you will not be disappointed ... it sounds exactly the way it should ... like an ACDC album!!!

Randoms ...

This has absolutely nothing to do with how I voted last night nor am I trying to pretend like I know anything about politics ... but wasn't last nights election useless? There's not a new Gov't ... there's not a majority Gov't ... and David L. Anderson is still our guy. What has changed? Nothing, that's the answer. I can think of one word to sum it up ... Useless.

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The CFL just announced that Theory of a Deadman is going to play the half time show for the Grey Cup in Montreal. I think my response was the same as everyone else in this country ... yes they're good ... but are they Grey Cup half time show good? The answer to that question is no .. they're not. Don't get me wrong .. they're a rock solid band ... "She likes to shake her A**, she grinds it to the beat!" Whoever comes up with lyrics like that knows how to rock ... but in the past the CFL has booked larger acts. Bryan Adams, The Tragically Hip, Lenny Kravitz! Theory of a Deadman still plays clubs for crying out loud ... at least get someone who can sell out arena's!!

Actually I had a funny conversation about Theory of a Deadman the other day ... it was with one of my buddies. It went kinda like this ...

Buddy: "what do you think of that new Nickelback song?"
Chance: "You mean that crappy one off of Dark Horse that sounds like a boy band? I think it's terrible!"
Buddy: "No the one where he's talking about his girlfriend shaking her ....."
Chance: " ..... ohhhhh ... you mean Theory of a Deadman, Bad Girlfriend!"

It was confusing ... but then again .. so is trying to figure out the difference between Nickelback and Theory of a Deadman at times!

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We added two songs to the Eagle play list last week that I think was ... daring. The only reason I say that is because they aren't big name bands ... and they both sound a little different from the music you'll normally hear on the station. The one is Kings of Leon - "Sex on Fire" ... which I would call a lack luster song ... and the other is Rise Against - Re- Education (through labor) ... an unbelievably great song ... but it's pretty heavy compared to the norm.

What does this mean? Not much really ... I just like talking about music.

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This is a great time of year to be in radio. There are times where I get to work and think ... "What am I going to talk about today?" I'll be the first to admit .. sometimes it gets kinda slow in the biz!! But right now ... I can't find enough time in a day to talk about what needs to be talked about. The Bronco's are awesome ... The Riders are being controversial as usual ... Christmas is coming quick ... we've got all sorts of contests going on ... there was a federal election last night.... its crazy, in a good way!

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Vote on the poll I got going. It's about the Grey Cup half time show.

Election Day

Its been so long since I blogged that I literally forgot my password for this site! Took me 10 minutes to go through all the passwords I could have possibly used till I guessed the right one!

This is just a short entry. Not because I don't have anything to write about .. mainly cause my keyboard is busted and it's making me furious.

It's election day ... I know most people are already certain who they are going to vote for. But I am on the fence. It's going to be a game time decision ...

Here's the info you need for voting in Swift:

Voting locations ... Oman, Fairview, Irwin, and Central schools .... Trailview alliance church ... the I-plex social hall ... and the Rec Centre.

Phone this number to find out which one for sure - 778-3030 or go to this website elections.ca/home.

Good Luck.